Packers Fan Has It in His Blood

I first heard about 79-year-old Jim Becker while reading Sports Illustrated a few weeks ago. It was a little box where the magazine talks about “Signs of the Coming Apocalypse.” Having appropriated that designation as a label for several of my blog posts, I of course was interested.

But when I did the research, I was surprised. Mr. Becker certainly is NOT deserving of the “Apocalypse” dishonor.

I discovered that yes, he has been raising money over the years to buy season tickets for Green Bay Packers games by selling his blood. But there’s a good reason for that. He didn’t want to spend family money. He and his wife have 11 children to feed.

So instead, he sold his blood for $15 a pint, often enough to earn the annual price of a season ticket. That in itself would qualify him as a rabid fan.

But it’s not the entire story. If he hadn’t chosen the “blood sale” route, Becker might not be around today. During a routine physical that asked about his family history, the doctors found out that his father had “hemochromatosis,” and had died at the age of 43.

Hemochromatosis is a condition whereby your blood retains too much iron. The only way to alleviate the excess iron build-up is to remove blood. And that’s what was keeping Becker alive. He just didn’t find out until he’d already given 145 pints.

His loyalty to the Packers, coupled with his remarkable story, won him a spot in the Green Bay Packers FAN Hall of Fame, selected from 10 finalists who were voted upon by 40,000 fans.

In addition to four club seats to one of the Packers’ home games this coming season, Becker will receive a $500 Packers gift certificate and a one-year subscription to two Packers publications. Also, he and a guest (I would guess his wife, since she most assuredly needs a vacation to get away from 11 kids) will go on a road trip to a Packers away game – tickets, air fare and hotel room.

A sign that the Apocalypse is near? Hardly.